Today, people read almost daily reports about the “broken patent system” in newspaper articles, blogs and at social media websites. Is this true? On the one hand, the high-tech and biotech industries seem awash in patent litigation, and Congress, regulatory agencies, and courts are considering adopting a variety of reform measures. On the other hand, patents are securing property rights in technological innovation once imagined only as science fiction — tablet computers, smart phones, genetic testing for cancer, personalized medical treatments for debilitating diseases, and many others — and these technological marvels are now a commonplace feature of our lives.

To discuss these two conflicting stories about whether the patent system promotes or hampers innovation, we will host two distinguished jurists: Paul Michel, former Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and Judge Richard Posner of the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Both judges have unparalleled depth in knowledge about patent policy and the working details of the patent system. This Teleforum brings them together for the first time to discuss their respective views on whether the patent system today is properly securing property rights in new innovation.